New SIII 88", which fluids should I be using?

[morgant]

I just picked up an '82 Series III 88" (RHD w/2.8 NA Daihatsu diesel kit conversion). It'll be a driving project once it's out of the shop for some brake work.

I'm unsure when the last time any fluids were changed in it so I was going to do the oil, tranny, and diffs, but was wondering what brands/types, weights, amounts, and frequencies I should be using on this truck? Anything I missed?

Also, once I've gotten used to it a bit I'm going to start going through it bit by bit, so if there's a suggested order of operations, I'd greatly appreciate the pointer. I'm assuming Teriann's pre and post trip checklists are a good starting point.

[rovertek]

i use 15/40 rotella for diezels and you should use 80/90 hypoid gear oil for trand, transfer,od, diffs, steering box and relay,

[Tim Smith]

Welcome aboard!

The above sounds good to me but you might also want to check/fill the steering kingpins for 90wht.

Also be sure to check the steering joints for slop and if they are greasable then go for it. You might as well grease the drive shaft joints too while you are at it.

The most rewarding thing I find is going over the truck with an oil can and lubricating every moving joint I can find. You might be surprised how easy a door will latch once it's been oiled up a bit.

Good luck!

[scott]

beer, my rove wouldn't work with out it. it slows me down when i'm working on it so that the mistakes made from rushing repairs are minimized. i use it to time my truck, sitting on the wing i adjust the dizzy 'til the ripples are their smallest, using bottle beer i check for level ground before checking fluid levels by drinking a bit then setting it on the wing and compare the suface of the beer to the top of the label. and if i have enough it will move me away from my tendency to count rivits and move me towards solid functionality. it helps with pain management too, the bloody knuckles don't hurt so much when there's beer. it helps me with deciding when to change motor oil, if it looks like ale leave it if it looks like guiness change it.

[morgant]

Excellent, all. Exactly what I was lookin' for.

Not much of a drinker, but that seems to be the most versatile fluid to have on hand. Probably best to keep fridge stocked for the days when you limp back home after a roadside repair and have to wait for parts to get shipped in.

[morgant]

Scott's reply to a different thread is also extremely helpful:

castrol 90 wt, gallons of it. that's what's in the sterring box, steering relay, swivelballs, diffs, tranny, transfer case, overdrive. bring a funnel with about 18" of tubing on the end of it and you should be able to hit all the fill ports. i also carry the quart bottles with the little pointy thing caps that the 18" of tubing fits on. my rear tail ights have the cages and i found that my tubing stores there nicely. loops up one side and down the other.

... in case anyone happens across this thread in the future or I go looking for it.

Never replaced/topped off gear oil in steering, swivelballs, or diffs and my "Blue Book" is still in the truck (which I'll be pick up from the garage again tonight, then it's off to another garage for the exhaust work), any tips there?

[greenmeanie]

Also, once I've gotten used to it a bit I'm going to start going through it bit by bit, so if there's a suggested order of operations.

Order of operations:
1. Remove oil filter to change oil.
2. Dismantle rest of truck entirely and spend 2-5 years completely rebuilding it from the ground up.
3. Refill with fresh oil.

A bit facetious I know, but it seems to bite most of us at some point.

On my DD I generally don't do spot repairs but instead deal with entire systems at once as it saves time and effort. Pulling an entire axle off and rebuilding it as a unit is more economical than attacking individual parts as they wear out. Of course once that has done you'll be back to fix it later but you've now established a good baseline.

[rbonnett]

Order of operations:
1. Remove oil filter to change oil.
2. Dismantle rest of truck entirely and spend 2-5 years completely rebuilding it from the ground up.
3. Refill with fresh oil.

A bit facetious I know, but it seems to bite most of us at some point.

On my DD I generally don't do spot repairs but instead deal with entire systems at once as it saves time and effort. Pulling an entire axle off and rebuilding it as a unit is more economical than attacking individual parts as they wear out. Of course once that has done you'll be back to fix it later but you've now established a good baseline.

Plus Step 2 is quicker if Step 1 is a whole system rather than just the oil filter